


Deadly Secrets

by L_O_S_T, Lostchild



Series: The Price to Pay [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Athena is a pan disaster, Cuddling & Snuggling, Danny is a bi disaster, Explicit Language, F/F, Fluff and Angst, How Do I Tag, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Italian Mafia, LGBTQ+ Original characters, LOTS of violence, M/M, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Original Mafia Story, Please Don't Repost, Puppies, Talk of Rape, Will Add Tags As We Go, but no actual rape, mafia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:21:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29097960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/L_O_S_T/pseuds/L_O_S_T, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lostchild/pseuds/Lostchild
Summary: “What’s so special about this one, boss?”Athena hurries off the bus, throwing a rushed farewell over her shoulder to the driver, as he pulls off the curb. ‘I’m gonna be so fucking late!’ she thinks, irritably, as she rushes down the New York city sidewalk. Her phone pings, but ignores it, so she can ruck up the bag on her shoulder to a more comfortable position. She really hopes it's Tara. She hasn’t seen her girlfriend in over a week and it’s really starting to eat at her. She runs so fast by the Italian restaurant next to her job, that old man Rex yells after her to slow down.“Trust me, she’s a definite asset to our company…”
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: The Price to Pay [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2134947





	1. Prologue

_ “What’s so special about this one, boss?” _

Athena hurries off the bus, throwing a rushed farewell over her shoulder to the driver, as he pulls off the curb. ‘ _ I’m gonna be so fucking late!’  _ she thinks, irritably, as she rushes down the New York city sidewalk. Her phone pings, but ignores it, so she can ruck up the bag on her shoulder to a more comfortable position. She really hopes it's Tara. She hasn’t seen her girlfriend in over a week and it’s really starting to eat at her. She runs so fast by the Italian restaurant next to her job, that old man Rex yells after her to slow down.

_ “Trust me, she’s a definite asset to our company…” _

Athena would usually take her time before going into the bar she worked nights at, and maybe shoot the shit with Vince while smoking outside. Now, as she yanks the glass door open, she’s running fifteen minutes late and can already hear her boss yelling at her to get her ass in gear. When the bell jingles above the entryway to  _ Vinny’s, _ she doesn't waste any time in sweet talking the owner, already making her way behind the shiny, wooden bar. 

_ “I’ll always trust you, boss, that’s why I’m here.” _

Vince barely looks up from where he’s wiping the surface of the bar off. It’s not busy tonight, so that’s always a good thing, but the haunted look in Vinny’s eyes makes her stop short in pulling her hair up in a ponytail. She hesitantly walks up to her boss’s side, calling his name out softly to get his attention.

_ “Bring her to me.” _

“Someone came looking for you earlier,” Vince’s voice rings out in the quietness of the bar. His movements are slow and jerky, like his mind is somewhere else. He still doesn’t look up at Athena, keeping his eyes down, voice shaking. Afraid. 

“Who was it?” Athena raises her eyebrows, checking her phone for messages. There’s one message from a number she doesn’t recognize, and she hesitates, but opens the text anyway. Her eyes scan over the message, her heart dropping into stomach.

_ “Yes, Mr. Romano.” _

“What’d you say your last name was again, Athena?” Vinny asks her, finally looking up.

“That fuckin’ bitch…” Athena mutters to herself. She totally ignores Vince’s question in lieu of yelling about the message she just received. “Tara fuckin’ just broke up with me over text! Can you believe this shit, Vin?” She’s looking down at her phone, so she doesn’t see Vinny’s sad, pale face staring back at her. 

Athena tries to call the number the text was sent from, but the only thing she gets out of that is an automated voice message telling her that the line has been disconnected. She growls in frustration, “I knew she was too good to be true!” She feels like throwing her phone across the room, but barely restrains herself.

Tara and her had been going steady for all of two months, and Athena had thought that this was definitely the one. She wants to laugh at herself for even thinking that when all her other relationships had crashed and burned as well. What was so different about this one? Nothing, apparently.

“I’m headed to the back, ‘thena. Holla if ya need me.” He sounds absolutely miserable as he trudges to the swinging door that leads to the back room. Athena notices his misery and turns to go after him, find out who was looking for her, why it has her boss looking so pale, but the jingle of the door bell grabs her attention.

“Welcome to Vinny’s!” she calls over to whoever walked in, not even looking up to see them. Her eyes are fixed on the door Vince just disappeared into, wondering what’s got him so spooked. A deep, raspy voice cuts into her thoughts.

“You guys got Puni Alba?” the voice, the  _ customer _ , asks as he slides into a stool at the bar. He has a strong south side accent.

When Athena looks over at him, she has to keep herself from openly staring at all the scarring on the man’s face. Even his hands, the only other thing she can see because of his expensive suit, look like they’ve been burned harshly. He looks like he’s been picked straight out of a movie set. A horror movie set.

“Uh, sorry, sir, we don’t sell top shelf whiskey here,” she answers, as she notices that the suit is bespoke, it looks like a brand that’s way too expensive to be seen around this bar. He looks so out of place, but she’s sure that he’d look out of place anywhere with those horrible scars. 

He cocks his head to the side, regarding her coolly.

“That’s a shame.” He smirks, like he knows that already. He pats the bar twice, that smirk still playing on his lips, then sends her a small wave goodbye, before disappearing back out into the night. 

‘Why is everything weird happening today?’ Athena thinks as she starts taking stock of their beer supply. 

“Can’t wait till twelve a.m. rolls around…” she mutters, almost in a sigh, as she starts her work night.

_ “Found our girl.” _


	2. Grasping for Control

Athena sighs irritably as she locks the back door to the building, really hating that she’s the one who has to lock up tonight. Vince had left minutes after he had headed to the back, saying that his knees were acting up again. 

“Bullshit…” Athena mutters as the lock jams. She turns the key more forcefully, praying to God that it doesn’t break off into the lock. “He’s just running away from his problems again…” she grumbles, yanking the key out and pocketing it. Athena makes sure her bag is secure on her shoulder before turning and heading down the sidewalk toward the bus stop.

Athena pulls her phone out of her pocket, pulling up Tara’s texts to reread them, getting angrier by the minute. She feels like screaming. She wants to strangle something or  _ someone _ . She wants to break down and cry. Everything she’s ever done hasn’t worked out right.

She turns her phone off, checking her face in the reflection of the blank screen to make sure her ponytail isn’t askew from working all night and to make sure her eyes aren’t red and watery. She’s still grumbling to herself when she spots a discrete, black SUV following behind her at snail pace. A red flag pops up in her head immediately, her pace picking up a beat. She’s not going to make it to the bus stop. 

Athena makes a hasty decision and ducks into a filthy alley, sees a dumpster, and quickly hides behind it. She’s barely breathing when she peeks out from behind the garbage stacked on top of the disposal, sees five men in nice black suits pass by, speaking into earpieces in rich Italian accents. She holds a hand up to her mouth. There’s no mistaking that they’re looking for her when she hears one of them mumble her last name into their communicator. She presses her back against the brick wall of the alley, her eyes squeezed tightly shut, hoping against hope that they won’t find her. A man’s voice from beside her makes Athena jump.

“We sure gave ‘em the slip.” Her eyes snap open, whips her head to the side to see the scarred man from before. 

Her hand tries to slip into her back pocket, to grab her small pocket knife, hoping she can defend herself against the smartly-dressed man. 

“Ah, ah, ah… I wouldn’t do that if I were you…” His eyes look empty, but strangely deadly, holding his hands up as if he’s walking up on a scared animal. He takes a step toward her, immediately darting away when she thrusts the knife in his direction. He sends her a dangerous smirk. “Woa, there, girlie. I'm tryin’ to save ya! Wouldn't want you to fall into the wrong hands…” His dead eyes bore into hers, like a demon inhabiting a corpse.

It sends a sharp chill down her spine.

“I think I can take care of myself.” She narrows her eyes at his scarred face, as he smirks all of a sudden. “What are you–“ she screams in pain as her arm is wretched behind her body from an unseen opponent, effectively pinning her in place.

“Now that I have your undivided attention,” he rocks back and forth on the soles of his feet, bringing out his revolver from the back of his slacks, “can you be a good puppy and walk with us?” He looks like a kid in a candy shop.

Athena growls and spits with great accuracy at the man’s shoe, ruining the polish on his expensive kicks, earning her an even sharper tug on her arm. 

“F-fuck you,” she grits out, sweat beading on her forehead. 

The man slowly looks from her down to his shoe, like a curious cat. He cocks his head to the side as he takes in the fact that she actually did that. 

“Well, I  _ can  _ say that you  _ do  _ have pretty big balls, Miss Cosmos, but your brain must not be workin’ right, ‘cause that was a  _ pretty  _ dumb move.” Her name on his lips makes her cringe. How the hell does he know her name?

He smirks. He doesn’t seem particularly bothered by his shoes being spit on, just the opposite. 

He looks  _ thrilled.  _

“Oh, the boss picked a fun one to play with tonight, eh, boys?” He looks unhinged, like something isn’t right up top.

There’s a chorus of laughter and wolf calls all around her, letting her know that the five men she saw earlier were not alone. Why were they all here just to take  _ her _ ? It’s not like she has a goddamn army or something. She barely has friends. 

The man stalks the few paces it takes to stand in front of her. This close, his scars are even more pronounced and she can see that his eyes are a deep emerald color. Hard to believe that whatever happened to him didn’t take the bastard’s eyes with it. Athena glares up at him, ready to bite if she has to. She learned a few things growing up on the streets in downtown New York, the first being: if all else fails, bite the shit out of them.

All of a sudden the man’s smirk drops, his finger going up to his earpiece, eyes always on Athena.

“Yeah, we got ‘er. Yes, sir.” His smirk is back when he raises his nonexistent eyebrow expectantly at her. “You ready to take a ride, girlie?”

At the prospect of getting in a car with him or any of these guys, she starts to struggle harder than before, only resulting in the hand on her arm tightening, _ painfully _ . She doesn’t stop thrashing though. She wants to make it as hard on these guys as possible.

She kicks and screams for them to let her go, but it falls on deaf ears. Her eyes scitter back and forth between the mouth of the alley and the criminals that are holding her back from escaping, trying to think of a way out. She thinks she feels the hand, crushing her wrist bones together, start to slip. She just needs one more moment of struggling...

“You’re so fun, I like that about you!” the lead man says giddily, and before she can even think about retorting, he’s bringing the butt of his gun down onto the back of her head, making her world swirl to black. 

\------------------------------------------------------------

“Was that really necessary, Will?” the giant of a man asks. “I thought the boss said not to hurt her.” He holds the young woman against his broad, muscled chest, not wanting her to fall into the muddy puddle in the alleyway.

“I didn’t hurt her! She’s sleepin’!” the scarred man, Will, gestures to the girl, who’s now bleeding from a small gash on her head. Will rolls his eyes and slips his gun into his back holster, pulling out a pack of Marlboro Reds in the same motion. “Besides, she harked on my fuckin’ shoe, Ben.” He lights one up and takes a long drag from the cancer stick. “She had it comin’ to ‘er.”

The brick house of a man, Benny, rolls his eyes at his acquaintance. Sometimes he wonders why this guy is his boss’ right hand man. 

“Why do I get the feelin’ you’ve said this before?” Benny mutters, as he starts dragging Athena’s unconscious body toward the back of the alley where a black SUV is inconspicuously parked.

Will saunters behind the two of them, a sharp whistle ringing out loudly from between his fingers as he presses them to his lips. “Round ‘em up, and load ‘em out!” he yells just as loudly, sticking the cigarette between his lips once again. He slides up beside Benny, as men from every direction hurry past them to get to their respective cars.

Will watches Benny carefully lay Athena in the backseat of the SUV, smirking, as smoke billows past his lips, “Such a good little helper. Tell me again why you joined the mob?” 

“I don’t know,” Benny grunts as he closes the car door, “why don’t you ask your mother?” He sends Will a wry smile, before stepping up onto the foot bar, and slides into the driver's seat of the SUV. 

Will growls, not unlike a rabid animal, and stomps over to the other side of the car, yanking the door open and pointing a finger at Benny, “I’ll have you know–“ his words freeze in his throat when he sees that Benny is on one of the business phones. Will knows exactly who he’s talking to.

Benny sends Will a smug smirk as he speaks to their boss. “Yes, sir. We have the cargo, and are on our way.” When he hangs up the phone, he raises his eyebrows expectantly at Will, “You comin’, William?” 

Will grumbles a weak “fuck off” and climbs into the car, slamming the door out of pettiness. He lights another cigarette, rolling the window down to let the smoke out.

After a few minutes of driving through traffic in a silence that could be cut with a knife, Benny decides to start up a conversation with the mob’s second in command. 

“Do I get to ask questions about the girl, or is that off limits as well?” Benny doesn’t take his eyes off the road as he speaks.

“You can ask questions, doesn’t mean I’ll answer ‘em though.” Will stares out the window on his side of the car.

“First name, or last name basis?”

“Last.” 

That piques Benny’s interest. It must be important.

“Alright, what’d she do?” Benny turns onto the highway, blending seamlessly into the traffic.

Will smirks, the smug bastard. “Well, that’s not for the fry cooks to know, now is it?” His voice is dripping with disdain. Benny has half a mind to slam on the brakes so he’ll swallow that cigarette. He keeps his cool, though, and obeys most of the traffic laws.

There’s a quiet moan that cuts through the silence right when Will starts fiddling with the radio. It makes the scarred man turn his attention to the backseat, giving Benny a chance to quickly push the power button off and listen for any signs that the young woman might be trying to escape. It also gives him a break from Will’s horrible taste in music.

Will reaches for the gun they keep in the glovebox, making sure the girl can see that he has it gripped tightly in his hand. He sneers at her, twisted in his seat so he can keep an eye on her.

“Someone’s awake.”

Benny eyes the gun in Will’s lap. “If you blow out another window, so help me God–“ 

Athena sits up slowly in the backseat, rubbing her head where it hurts the most, her hand coming back with fresh crimson blood. She rasps, “Fuck you, bastards.” She lists to the side a bit, but still tries the door and window, finding them both locked.

“Sit still would ya? You’re givin’ me a headache.” Will narrows his eyes.

Athena, likely knowing she’s not going anywhere anytime soon, sits back in her seat and glares a hole into Will’s head. Will smirks, thinking he’s done a good job here. He turns back around to stare out the windshield. 

“Hope ya don’t have a goldfish or somethin’ ya need to feed back at home.” He winks at her in the rearview mirror, earning him a glare that only makes him smirk harder. “Oh, you are a hoot, Miss Cosmos, I do declare.” He chuckles at his own statement.

“Where are you taking me?”

“To talk to our boss.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------

Athena bristles at the short and vague answer, “Fuck you and fuck your boss!”

“Whoa! Big fuckin’ balls on this one!” His smile vanishes just as quickly as it appears. He keeps his cold, dead eyes on her even as they pull into a guarded underground parking garage.

Athena’s eyes dart to the driver, as he flashes his ID at the guard at the gate. The guard waves them through along with the three cars behind them. As her window passes by the men outside, she can’t help but notice how they definitely don’t look like normal guards. Their clothes make them look more like bouncers than anything else. So, guards that can kick some major ass then. There’s no way she’s getting out of here.

Athena glances out the window over the driver’s shoulder, “After Hours?” She rolls her eyes at the name, “There’s no way that’s  _ not _ a strip club.” She muses out loud. 

The driver snorts, “You’re right about that, but it’s pretty tasteful for what it is.” He has an odd look on his face, like he's trying to figure out why he's even talking to her. He seems to shrug the question off and parks the SUV in a reserved spot near the back door. 

Athena huffs, thinking to herself, ‘I’ll see if I can get away, when they, hopefully, let me out.’

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

Will is out of the car as soon as it parks. He wants to get this over with. He tugs his suit jacket closer to himself, the expensive fabric doing nothing to shield him from the cold. Why he let Benny drive and have the keys, he’ll never know. What he does know is that if he doesn’t get in there fast, his balls are going to crawl up inside him. 

Benny pauses at Athena’s door. She glares at him and starts to tug on the door handle, yelling, “What are you waiting for? Let me out!” She knows the handle won’t budge, but that doesn’t stop her from doing it anyway.

Benny makes sure that the young woman can see the gun on his hip, under his suit jacket, “Please don’t try to escape, I don’t want to be forced to do something drastic.” He looks up to the back door when Will makes an impatient noise.

“Hurry it up, Ben! If she runs, she’ll find the consequences out the hard way!” He blows hot air into his hands, glaring at Benny from his place next to the locked door.

The girl glares up at Benny as he opens the door for her. She walks in front of him, only realizing that she’s been flanked by four other men when they reach the door. Her eyes flick to Will, as the scarred man knocks on the thick metal three times, and like out of a movie, an eye slot opens up for a second, then closes. The door opens seconds later, and she’s suddenly being shoved into the back of the “tasteful” strip club.

A flitting thought about running shoots through Athena’s mind. She doesn’t. She knows that she’ll be shot before she gets too far.

The thumping beat of the club music reverberates through her chest, even this far away from the actual strip club.

Even as they make their way through the winding hallways, down a flight of stairs, and into the bleak basement, she doesn’t back down. Athena keeps her eyes forward, narrowed, and alert. She’s aware of her surroundings. She’s lived ten years on her own in the dirty streets of New York, and she’s not going to die now just because someone got the wrong person.

Athena doesn't back down.

They stop abruptly in front of a nondescript door, Athena almost running into the large man’s broad back. She huffs, glaring daggers at the man’s head. He raps on the door with his knuckle, a code that she’ll never remember. Probably doesn’t matter if she could anyway. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees some of the other men straighten their suit jackets and ties. Cold anxiety washes over Athena. Whoever is behind that door must be pretty important. Still, she doesn’t run, and she doesn’t let her eyes stray.

The simple wooden door opens after the scarred man has a little chat with the guard on the other side. Athena’s heartbeat picks up considerably. She doesn’t let it show. She knows not to show weakness in front of predators, knows baring your neck will only get you bitten. 

And these men are definitely snakes.

The scarred, asshole of a man pushes her into the room by her shoulder, not rough, but not soft either. Athena shoots him a glare.

“Hey, show some fuckin’ respect.” he hisses, quietly, as he returns the glare. He looks straight forward when someone clears their throat. A deep, sultry voice resounds through the room, whiskey coated, almost like they want to sound nice but can’t really find the actual inspiration to. It catches Athena’s attention, whipping her head to face in the direction of the smoky voice.

“Be nice, Will.” 

As Athena takes in the man’s appearance, she can’t help but wonder why she didn’t take the chance to run when she had it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title for this chapter comes from _Basket Case_ by Green Day. The song/lyrics DON'T BELONG TO US!!! We just felt that the lyric goes well with the chapter.
> 
> Thank you again to This_Time_I_Wont_Regret_My_Username for beta reading for us! We're very thankful that you're there to point out the mistakes we're making. We're pretty sure this wouldn't have turned out as good without you.


	3. I Should Probably Introduce Myself

It's a pretty big room, if she's being honest.

Her current prison is dimly lit, the only light coming from a lamp on the large, oak desk in the middle of the room. Books of all shapes and sizes line the walls on great bookshelves, the only real colors that stand out. Everything else is either painted black or deep grey. Like a fun house at a fair, she feels as though the walls are closing in on her. It's suffocating her to the point she forgets to breathe. It reminds her of that horrible night, the night she wishes she had  _ fought harder. _

Athena feels as though she could've done  _ more _ , could have  _ fought better  _ and she wouldn't be in this predicament. All those kickboxing lessons are useless if she doesn't actually remember to use them, she guesses. She could have at least fought  _ more,  _ instead of passing out after the asshole hit her. He didn't even hit her that hard!

She swallows down her nerves, grunting when the scarred man, Will, pushes her down into the plush chair on their side of the desk.

“Fuckin’ asshole…” she mumbles, making sure Will can hear her loud and clear. 

WIll raises his arm to backhand her, but freezes when the man with the smokey voice pipes up. 

“Ah, ah, ah… I thought you had better manners than that, William.” The man speaking turns, a crystal tumbler of scotch in his right hand. He eyes Athena up and down, but not sexually, more like he's considering her. He slowly stalks over to the desk, like closing in on his prey. He slides into the wingback chair across the desk from her, narrowing his deep brown eyes at her. 

“Is this some kinda fuckin’ joke?” he growls, turning his full attention to Will. He glares at his right hand man, pointing a ringed finger at him, like an angry parent would scold their child.

Will straightens his back, chin up, in parade rest. He looks just a little on the terrified side as he raises his scarred, nonexistent eyebrow. Athena can tell he's shuffling from foot to foot, minutely, since they're so close to each other. He licks his dry lips, nervously.

“No, boss, this is the girl you wanted… what's the matter?” His voice shakes the slightest bit.

“ _ Ohhh… big bad man is scared of his boss..”  _ Athena thinks, smirking. If she makes it out of this alive, she's definitely going to poke  _ that _ button. She makes sure the asshole sees her smug smirk, before turning back to the boss.

“She’s a fuckin’ child, Will! You expect me to believe that this  _ teenager _ was dating Tara Russo-!”

“I’m twenty-six, old man!” Athena finally pipes up, her anger boiling out of her like a lava out of a volcano. She tries to stand, but a strong hand clamps down on her shoulder, holding her in place. She glances up, ready to slap Will’s hand away, but finds that it's the larger man with a strange glint in his eyes. He doesn’t look at her, but something about his posture makes her think he's holding her down to save her from trouble.

Big boss man’s eyes snap back over to hers, and he smiles, sickeningly sweet, revealing a silver tooth where his right canine should be. “Sorry, Athena, I didn’t mean to offend.” He snaps his fingers and points at the door, sending most of the men out of his study. 

She narrows her eyes, hating the sound of her name rolling off his tongue. He’s like the serpent in the garden of Eden, trying to entice Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. Athena knows better, she’s always thought of herself smarter than Eve.

Athena keeps her glare trained on the man in front of her, “Who the fuck are you and why did you kidnap me?” Her voice is dangerous, not wavering one bit, to her credit. Inside, though, her anxiety builds.

“Oh, forgive me for my lack of manners, Miss Cosmos.” He holds out his hand for her to shake, his fingers adorned with thick gold and silver rings. “Daniel Romano, I got some questions for ya.” He smirks at her, like he knows how repulsive she thinks he is, and he likes fucking with her.

Athena ignores his outstretched hand in favor of crossing her arms over her chest, “And you couldn't have asked me like a normal human being? You know, like a normal fucking conversation over drinks?” She's so pissed. 

Daniel’s smirk falters, turning into a sneer. He folds his hands on top of the table, “I have reason to believe that you were close to one of my employees…Miss Tara Russo?” His eyes burn into hers, as her expression turns guarded. “Tell me what you know about her.” His tone of voice leans on nonchalance, but his eyes suggest otherwise. He takes another sip of his scotch, watching her over the rim of his tumbler. 

Athena shrugs a shoulder, her voice bitter, “All I know is that she broke up with me over text last night.” She reaches for her pocket to look for her phone, the movement causing the men around her to pull their guns. Daniel even looks uneasy, his hand reaching under the desk. Athena holds her hands up, not wanting to get shot, “Whoa, I was just reaching for my phone-”

“Bullshit.” Will spits the word, venomously, holding his cocked gun off to the side.

Daniel holds one of his hands up, effectively shutting the unhinged man up, “I believe you, Miss Cosmos.” He leans back in his chair, his dark brown eyes never leaving Athena’s face. He cocks his head to the side, almost a human gesture, if it didn't look so forced. “Did the text say anything about where she could be? Where she might be going?” He drums his fingers on the desk, all his attention on her.

“Fuck if I know.” Athena frowns, “She mentioned once that she had family in Chicago, but if someone like you is looking for her, I doubt she's headed there.” She keeps her chin up, trying to look down her nose at the man. It's a hard thing to accomplish, since his ego emits the same big boss energy anyone she’s ever worked for has. It makes her skin crawl.

Daniel glances over Athena’s shoulder at Will, raising his scarred eyebrow at the man. Will is out of the room in an instant to obviously go find out about Tara’s family connections in the windy city. This, of course, leaves Athena alone with Daniel and the monster of a man that drove them here.

Daniel’s eyes are back on her when he says, “Listen, Miss Cosmos, I'm gonna let you in on a secret, and I don’t want you to make me regret it.” He speaks slowly, like he wants her to take it all in. Like he’s giving her a chance to back out. Athena squeezes her arms where they are folded over her chest, narrows her eyes, daring.

‘ _ Bring it on, big boy.’ _

Daniel’s face is a stone wall, “You’re being watched.” He reaches under his desk again, eyes never straying from her. He brings out a decanter of whiskey and pours himself a couple of fingers, “Not by me, although your boss has been under my radar for a while now.” He takes a long gulp of the amber liquid, “No, you're being watched by a rival of mine… goes by the alias ‘The Snake’. You probably know him as Stel Agosti.”

Athena’s face drains of all color.

“Shit… what do you mean ‘watched’?” Her voice betrays her as it shakes, her eyes no longer narrowed, but as round as plates. How did Stel even know where she was? Who are all these people, all of a sudden, coming out of the woodworks?

Daniel points at the desk, leaning in, an urgent look in his eyes, “As in, if you'd gone to your little apartment tonight? You'd be sleepin’ with the fishes’, girl.” He shakes his head to himself, leaning back and lighting up a cigarette that he produces from a drawer. “He always finds a way to snuff people out…” he mutters around the cigarette.

Athena reaches up to start fiddling with the ring on her necklace, a nervous tic she's never been able to break, “This can't be happening right now… I thought I'd gotten away from him-” A bitter laugh makes her eyes snap up to the man in front of her.

“You can't get away from Stel. Only run until he catches you.” 

“Why are you telling me this?” She looks at Daniel with suspicion. Maybe getting shot wouldn't be so bad.

“I can offer you protection,” Daniel states, likes it the most simple and obvious thing in the world. He blows a smoke ring into the air above his head, “I’m not a total monster.” He smirks at her when she raises her scarred, pierced, eyebrow at him.

“Why would you want to protect  _ me _ ? You don't even know _ me _ .” She shakes her head at him, disbelieving, as she sees a dangerous glint in Daniel’s eyes, “Sorry, mister, but where I come from, nothing ever comes for free.” She leans forward just as Daniel does the same, “What do you want from me, Mr. Romano?”

“Oh, you're a smart one, Athena,” he smirks at her with his dangerous eyes, “I want you to work for me and  _ only me. _ ” Before she can retort, “Why, you ask? It’s simple really.” He looks at her thoughtfully, but not saying anything else.

“Are you going to tell me why?” she asks, twirling her necklace in her fingers.

“Nope.” He takes out a file from one of the drawers of the desk, “Now, I’ll need you to sign a contract, but please think about the offer before doing so.”

Athena glances down at the file in front of her debating furiously in her head, knowing this whole thing is so  _ wrong.  _ She weighs her options. The mysterious Mr. Romano, that offers protection or the insane Sel Agosti, that might cut her tongue out just to show her how it works.

“I’ll give you time to think about it–“

“I’ll come with you, but only if I can bring my dog,” she blurts out her decision, not wanting to come face to face with the monster of a man that surely awaits her at her apartment.

Daniel gives her an amused look, “Of course, your room is right beside Will’s anyway.” He looks up a little wistful, “God, I hope it barks.” After pushing the folder over to her, he stands, “I’ll have someone fetch your things from your old apartment. Benny will drive you to the house.” 

Athena stands as well, not knowing of anything else to do, and takes the folder, “Do you need my keys, or are you guys able to get in and out easily?” She walks after Daniel to the door of his study.

Daniel shrugs, “If Stel’s been there, which we know he has,” he checks his watch, “the door will already be open.” He gives her his first smile since she’s been there and holds out his hand again for her to shake, “I hope that we can work well together, Miss Cosmos.”

Athena eyes his hand, but takes it in hers anyway, even if it’s just to be polite. He smirks at her as they part ways and she follows Benny out of the door.

Why does it feel like she’s just shook hands with the devil?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title for this chapter comes from Don’t Threaten Me with a Good Time by Panic! At the Disco. The song/lyrics DON'T BELONG TO US!!! We just felt that the lyric goes well with the chapter.
> 
> Sorry for the late update! Things have been a little nuts for us recently, but we're going to try to keep posting regularly.

**Author's Note:**

> This is our first original work together. We've been working on these characters and the "books" for a while and they've become very close to our hearts. We're hoping that you guys enjoy their stories as much as we enjoyed writing them. Thank you to This_Time_I_Wont_Regret_My_Username for beta reading for us! They write too, go check them out!
> 
> Come talk/scream at us:
> 
> L_O_S_T: screamingheads on tumblr
> 
> Lostchild: lostwolfchild on tumblr and @LostintheSilen1 on Twitter


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